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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  8. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  14. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  17. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  20. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. kick — in football
  3. ground — a position
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. jam — to spread on bread
  6. clip — to cut
  7. mouse — for a computer
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. scale — size or range
  10. jam — a tight spot
  11. ground — the earth
  12. ground — crushed
  13. club — for golf
  14. club — a group
  15. track — to keep track
  16. jam — in traffic
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. club — for dancing
  19. track — a song
  20. track — a path
  21. clip — for paper
  22. clip — a video
  23. scale — in music
  24. scale — for weighing

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com